


Just Another Day

by LyriaBlackFrost



Series: Fool and Chariot [8]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Angst, Fluff, M/M, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-25 21:05:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17128736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LyriaBlackFrost/pseuds/LyriaBlackFrost
Summary: Akira’s birthday never felt much like a special day to him.





	Just Another Day

**Author's Note:**

> I won't lie, this fic is a last-minute birthday gift to myself. I saw the chance to make Akira's birthday be in the same day as mine, and I grabbed it.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it! :)

Akira’s birthday never felt much like a special day to him.

It didn’t help that he was born during Christmas Eve, the day when everyone was too busy wishing him a “Merry Christmas” to remember it also happened to be his birthday.

The same thing happened in his house, except his parents would usually also skip the “Merry Christmas” part. He wouldn’t realize it until much later, but his family wasn’t exactly what someone would call “warm”. Most of the time, each one of them was too busy doing their own thing, and, at times, they could go for days without properly talking to each other. It wasn’t like they treated Akira badly, and he was already used to doing everything on his own, being more self-sufficient than most kids his age.

But still, he couldn’t deny that he felt lonely at times, especially in a day when, according to everyone else, you were supposed to feel special — well, if anything, at least he didn’t have to go through the embarrassment of having “happy birthday to you” sang to him in class.

When he was seven, he brought a stray dog home, and his parents didn’t protest against him keeping it, as long as he took care of the animal. He named her Lola, and she quickly got attached to him. So, it became like a habit during the following years to spend the night in his bed, cuddling with Lola, so she wouldn’t feel too scared of the fireworks. In a way, it was fulfilling, like a small birthday ritual for the two of them, and he was happy with that.

For the following six years, that day didn’t feel as lonely as before.

 

* * *

 

The Christmas Eve after Lola’s death just didn’t feel the same. She was already an adult dog when Akira adopted her, so it didn’t take long for her health to get worse, until she died of liver failure right in front of him, a few months prior.

He was sitting on the couch, reading a book, when his mother left her room, wearing a new dress and shoes. Since Akira was now old enough to be alone at home, both her and his father spent the holidays with their respective friends.

“I should be back by morning,” she said. “There’s money on the drawer if you need to buy anything.”

“Okay.”

She offered him a brief smile, walking to the front door. Before he could stop himself, Akira called her.

“Hey, mom…” he said. “It’s my birthday today, you know?”

She looked at him, the smile disappearing from her face.

“Why?” she asked. “Do you want something?”

He lowered his eyes, then shrugged.

“No… Just saying it.”

“Oh, good,” she sighed, relieved. “We don’t have money to spare right now.”

Saying that, she left the house with a brief wave of her hand, and just a little later, Akira heard the sound of the car leaving the garage.

Part of Akira wanted to be angry, or sad, or anything… But instead, he just felt tired. He knew she wasn’t doing that on purpose, but still…

He closed his book, placing it on the floor beside the couch, turning his body to the side, closing his eyes. He wasn’t feeling sleepy, but didn’t feel like doing anything else, either. If he wanted to, he could take a bus and spend the day with his mother’s family, who didn’t live too far from there, but… To be honest, it would be the same as spending the day with complete strangers, who also liked to make jokes about how _queer_ kids — like him — would burn in hell.

He had no close friends to call.

He missed Lola.

For the first time that day, Akira felt like crying.

 

* * *

 

He walked the snowy streets by Ryuji’s side. It was difficult to pretend everything was normal, especially after that battle, and what happened to Morgana — and, in Akira’s case, after his talk with Sae Nijima.

“What a way to celebrate, uh?” said Ryuji, in a clear attempt to lighten the mood. “Defeating a god, saving the world… Is this how you usually spend your birthdays?”

Akira chuckled, fixing his glasses with a dramatic gesture.

“Anything less wouldn’t be enough for a guy like me,” he said.

“Yeah, yeah…”

Ryuji lightly bumped him with his shoulder.

“Are you really fine with this?” he asked, looking at Akira. “I mean… The others would like to spend the day with you too, if you asked them.”

“Nah…” Akira shrugged. “It’s an important day.”

“Yeah, and you’re important to us.”

Akira couldn’t hold back a smile.

“More than Jesus?” he asked.

“For real?” that question made Ryuji laugh. “Are you jealous of frickin’ Jesus?”

“He stole my spotlight.”

“Dude…”

Ryuji reached for his head, messing his hair while Akira groaned in a half-hearted complaint.

“Anyway,” said Ryuji, “we should go and buy you a cake.”

“Sure… If you’re willing to face those monstrous lines.”

Ryuji followed Akira’s gaze, frowning at the number of people everywhere, buying last-minute gifts and food for the celebration.

“Ugh, you’re right…” he said. “Damn happy couples everywhere… It’s kinda annoying.”

“Aren’t we a happy couple too?”

“Yeah… But we’re not tryin’ to show it off to everyone else.”

Akira offered him a half smile.

“Don’t you want to show off, too?” he asked.

He said it as a joke, and was expecting Ryuji to elbow his ribs and call him an “asshole”. But, instead, he looked at Akira for an instant, then, with a sigh, reached for his hand, holding it, intertwining their fingers.

“Here, one more happy couple on the streets,” he said, hiding his embarrassment with a sarcastic tone. “Now, lemme go around and show off my pretty as hell boyfriend to everyone.”

Ryuji offered him a wide smile. Akira expected to feel happy with that gesture, but instead, it was like his heart was shattering.

 _He_ _’d surrender himself the next morning._

 _He wouldn_ _’t see Ryuji again after that._

Akira’s vision became blurry, and he closed his eyes, letting go of Ryuji’s hand, embracing him instead.

“Wha…” started to say Ryuji, clearly confused by that sudden action. “What are you—”

“I love you.”

His voice sounded so low and shaky it was almost pitiful. He felt Ryuji’s arms around him, gently pulling him close.

“Aki?” he said in a worried tone. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m sorry…”

“For what?”

Akira didn’t answer. He couldn’t tell Ryuji… It would just make everything worse.

“What’s happening?” insisted Ryuji.

“It’s nothing,” he said, trying to keep a steady voice.

“Like hell it’s nothing!”

Ryuji moved away from him, looking into his eyes.

“Can’t you trust me?” he asked.

The question made Akira avert his gaze.

“I said it’s nothing,” he insisted. “I just got surprised, that’s all.”

“Am I supposed to believe that?”

He couldn’t find an answer. Ryuji observed him for a while, before placing a hand on the crook of his neck, caressing it.

“Aki…” he said in a soft voice. “Please, don’t hide things from me anymore. I’m here for you, okay? I just wanna help.”

“If I tell you, you’ll try to stop me.”

“Stop what? What’s happening?”

Akira looked at him, a little hesitant.

“Can you promise me that you won’t do anything?” he asked.

“I…” Ryuji sighed. “I can’t. If something’s wrong, then I—”

“I can’t tell you, then.”

“But…”

Ryuji looked at him, ready to protest, but stopped himself, twisting his lips.

“Alright,” he said. “I won’t do anything. Tell me, what’s the problem?”

Akira took a deep breath.

“I’ll turn myself in to the police tomorrow morning.”

For a moment, Ryuji was unable to react to those words, simply staring at him with widened eyes.

“What?” he asked. “Why?”

Akira briefly explained to Ryuji what Sae had told him.

“In short, they want someone to blame,” he concluded. “And, well… I’m the leader, after all.”

A long silence fell upon them, as Ryuji absorbed everything Akira said. As he did, the confusion in his face gave place to anger.

“You can’t do it!” he said, finally.

“I have to.”

“This… This is bullshit!” he protested. “It’s thanks to you that everything’s fine! Why do you have to…” he grunted, gritting his teeth. “This is so unfair!”

“I’m sorry.”

Ryuji looked at him, and the anger faded from his eyes.

“Hey, babe…” he hugged Akira against his chest, whispering to him in a gentle tone. “Stop apologizing, okay? You did nothing wrong.”

Akira didn’t answer for a while, burying his face on his boyfriend’s shoulder.

“Ryuji…” he said. “I’m sorry for asking this, but… can you spend the night with me?”

“Of course.”

Ryuji tightened his embrace a little, resting his head against Akira’s for a moment.

“Wanna go back?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

They took the train to Yongen-Jaya, walking together to the Leblanc, without talking much. Sojiro wasn’t there, probably spending that day with Futaba. The two of them went upstairs, sitting side by side on Akira’s bed. Ryuji placed an arm around his shoulders, his gaze distant.

“I really can’t do anything?” he asked after a while.

Akira looked at him, and Ryuji’s troubled expression made him feel bad about sharing the news.

“It’s alright,” he said.

“It’s not! Dammit…”

Ryuji turned to face him, holding his shoulders with both hands, looking into his eyes.

“This isn’t right!” he said in a loud voice. “I can’t let you do this!”

“You said you wouldn’t stop me.”

“I said it ‘cause I didn’t know what you were talkin’ about!” He shook his head. “I can’t accept this! I… There must be somethin’ we can do!”

His grip on Akira’s shoulders tightened, becoming a little painful. Akira, however, didn’t complain, cupping his face with both hands. Ryuji simply looked at him for a moment, then, as if something had broken inside him, he started to cry. They hugged each other in silence for what seemed to be a long time.

“Aki…” muttered Ryuji. “You can’t go.”

“Ryuji… Please, let’s stop talking about it.”

“But…”

“Please.”

Ryuji sighed, unwillingly letting the subject go.

“Alright…

They lied on the bed, embracing each other. There were so many things Akira still wanted to say and do, but, knowing how little time they had, it all seemed meaningless. So, instead, he simply held Ryuji close to him, as if trying to engrave the feeling of his warmth in his memory.

“I don’t wanna go…” he muttered.

“I know…” Ryuji’s voice cracked. “Fuck…”

Somehow, the Christmas Eve of 2016 was the best and the worst of them all.

 

* * *

 

Sojiro stopped his car on the garage, and they walked to the Leblanc. Seeing it again felt nostalgic, even though he hadn’t been away for that long.

“Go ahead,” said Sojiro, indicating the door to him.

Akira suspected of something when he noticed Sojiro’s smile. However, he didn’t have the time to think too much about it, because as soon as he opened the door, a wave of cheers welcomed him. Everyone was there: so many smiles, so many faces he missed… Still, his eyes searched the room for the one he wanted to see the most.

And he soon found him.

Akira and Ryuji just looked at each other for a few seconds. Then, Ryuji got up from his stool, approaching him with wide steps. He threw his arms around Akira, who did the same.

Part of his brain discerned the sound of laughter, a whistle and an “aww” from Ann. But, most of it was concentrated on that warmth, that familiar smell, that proximity he thought he’d never feel again. Now, he simply didn’t want to let all those things go.

“Welcome back…” said Ryuji.

“I missed you so much.”

“Me too.”

When they finally let go of each other, the remaining former Phantom Thieves approached Akira, also giving him hugs and nudges, and messing with his hair. Only when they had enough of his suffering, Akira noticed the unusual decoration: colorful balloons and paper confetti all over the place, not counting all the food on the table.

“What’s all this for?” he asked, hiding his embarrassment behind a playful smile. “Did you guys miss me _that_ much?”

“Well, y’know…” started to say Ryuji, throwing an arm around his neck. “Your last birthday wasn’t really a happy day, so we decided to throw you a decent party now that you’re back.”

Akira stared at him, not knowing how to react for a while.

“Did you guys buy me a cake?” he asked.

“Two cakes, actually…” Futaba corrected him. “We didn’t know if you preferred chocolate or strawberry.”

“They’re in the fridge,” informed Sojiro.

Shit… They were making it difficult for him to act nonchalant. He lowered his eyes, forcing a small laugh.

“Where are my gifts, then?”

“C’mon, don’t be ungrateful!” said Ryuji.

“He’s just shy,” Ann pocked the side of Akira’s body, making him jump. “Hey… Have you lost weight?”

“Maybe?” said Akira. “I mean… I’ve been eating nothing but mud for a long time, now.”

Ann and Ryuji exchanged glances.

“Go get the cakes,” said Ryuji. “We’ll have to fix this ourselves.”

“Leave it to me!” answered Ann, sprinting to the fridge.

They all spent a long time eating and chatting, and it almost seemed to Akira like time hadn’t passed. He smiled to himself, placing an arm around Ryuji’s waist, resting the head against his shoulder. A low, happy chuckle left Ryuji’s lips, and he caressed Akira’s hair.

“Happy birthday,” he whispered.

Just two simple words, and suddenly Akira felt like crying: it wasn’t even the right date, but… Just to know they all cared so much about something like that was more than enough. More than he had ever hoped for.

Maybe, starting next year, Christmas Eves would become something special to him, after all.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this fic, kudos and comments are highly appreciated! ♥


End file.
